N.C. A&T College of Engineering Department Chair Honored with Two Awards

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (July 6, 2020) – Stephanie Luster-Teasley, Ph.D., chair of the civil architectural and environmental engineering department at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, received awards from the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) and Michigan State University (MSU), where she earned her M.S. in chemical engineering and Ph.D. in environmental engineering.

Luster-Teasley, an N.C. &T alumna, won the ASEE Environmental Division Service Award and was recognized by MSU with the 2020 Civil and Environmental Engineering Distinguished Alumni Award.

For Luster-Teasley, both recognitions are a testimony to what a degree from A&T can unlock for a young professional.

“It is an honor to be recognized with this distinction because the ASEE Environmental Engineering Division is dedicated to creatively train and prepare the next set of students who can address environmental concerns globally,” said Luster-Teasley.

She has served with the ASEE division since 2012 in various leadership roles and is an advocate for learning the pedagogies, new ideas and best practices that will best prepare and teach environmental engineering students.

“Representation of faculty from HBCUs on national committees is important to demonstrate the strength of A&T and division membership and service puts A&T on a larger radar,” said Luster-Teasley.

“The distinguished alumni award is very meaningful to me because when I was a student at MSU, I ran into many biases, microaggressions and challenges that I had to overcome,” said Luster-Teasley. “As a minority woman from an HBCU school attending an R1, many doubted my abilities. I feel honored that I proved that an HBCU graduate is just as prepared, creative and talented to contribute to making a difference in engineering.”

As chair, she is devoted to being a positive role model for her students and is committed to eliminating the barriers that race, ethnicity and identity pose for them.

Luster-Teasley became the first African American woman at A&T to be named inventor on a patent, with her invention to solve water treatment and remediation problems. She was honored with the the 2013 UNC Board of Governors Teaching Excellence Award and won the 2014-15 ASEE Dupont Minorities in Engineering award, as well as two best paper awards in the Environmental Engineering division. These awards increase the visibility of Luster-Teasley’s impactful work, as well as the caliber of A&T faculty, staff and student bodies.

“I have grown since 2004 to be a strong researcher, confident person and leader because of the support that I have received from many people at A&T and outside of A&T,” she said. “I try to give back to my students with as much love and support that I have received to hopefully help them become the success they want to be in their careers.”